Every year, millions of Americans suffer traumatic brain injuries, and many of them have long-term effects and issues. When someone’s negligence or intentional act led to your brain injury, you are legally entitled to compensation for medical bills and other losses. This is important because the long-term effects of a brain injury can be severe and life-changing.
If you or a loved one suffered a brain injury, speak to a brain injury attorney to learn if you have a legal claim. You can be compensated if another person or entity caused the injury. Some of the compensation you may be owed includes medical expenses, rehabilitation costs, lost earnings, loss of future earning ability, and mental and physical pain and suffering.
There Are No Minor Brain Injuries And Many Long-Term Effects
It’s a mistake to classify any brain injury as ‘minor’ or ‘mild.’ There isn’t any brain injury that isn’t serious. Even if you enjoy a full recovery from the brain injury, it may take a long time to get back to normal. And you may not be the same again.
Once you have had a brain injury in a car or other type of accident, the effects of any future brain injury will be worse. When there is brain trauma in an accident, there will always be long-term effects. Even if there is limited damage, it is never good to suffer brain damage. Some of the long-term effects of a brain injury from an accident may include:
- Brain fluid buildup
- Cognitive ability losses
- Memory losses
- Speech problems
- Frequent headaches
- Seizures
- Agitation
- Loss of executive functions
- Difficulty learning
- Communication problems
- Motor skill problems
There are many other potential long-term effects of a brain injury that can make life difficult or impossible. Some traumatic brain injuries lead to permanent brain injuries or degenerative brain injuries, such as dementia in various forms. A TBI can shorten your life expectancy or make you more likely to suffer other injuries. The CDC reports that people who survive a ‘moderate’ traumatic brain injury may have their life expectancy reduced by nine years. Additional long-term effects of the brain injury can be:
- Months or years of trips to the hospital affect your quality of life and income ability.
- Job loss or inability to work at all.
- Needing assistance at home with feeding, dressing, bathing, restroom use, and more.
- Anxiety, depression, and an overall lack of satisfaction with your new life after the accident.
- A higher chance of developing a drug or alcohol problem.
When you have many of the symptoms and long-term effects mentioned above, you will be faced with complicated medical and financial issues. You could have large medical bills and no way to pay them.
If another party caused your brain injury, you should retain a personal injury attorney immediately to review your case. Your attorney can prove that another party’s negligence injured you. Therefore, you would be entitled to compensation for your medical bills, rehabilitation, lost earnings, pain and suffering, and more.
Brain Injuries Are Incredibly Expensive To Treat
When another person causes your brain injury, it’s critical to prove fault so you can receive compensation. Receiving payment for someone’s negligence is simply justice being done. However, there are other reasons: Brain injuries are expensive to treat.
A brain injury victim may need immediate surgery and treatment in the first week after the accident to stabilize the situation. One study found that the in-hospital cost of treating a brain injury is more than $55,000, and that is just for the first days of care. The typical brain injury patient will have about $88,000 in hospital bills, and the initial medical costs can approach $400,000. These are just short-term medical costs!
Long-term medical expenses for TBIs can be equally expensive. Another study determined that long-term medical costs for TBI patients can be $3 million or more. Rehabilitation and therapy costs are yet more expenses that must be considered. You could require expensive physical, speech, and occupational therapy for years. Who will pay for it? The liable party for the accident should, and you need to find a local personal injury attorney to handle your case.
Brain Injuries Also Involve Tremendous Pain And Suffering
You could be entitled to other damages after a brain injury, also called non-economic damages. Some of these damages may include:
- Physical pain related to brain injury
- Depression and anxiety over your condition, treatments, and inability to live a normal life
- Difficulty sleeping
- Loss of life enjoyment as you compare what your life was like and is today
- Emotional trauma
How much is someone’s brain injury pain and suffering worth? It’s hard to say. We can say that the liable insurance company will have their view, and you and your loved ones will have another. The insurance company’s estimate will probably be less than yours. That’s another reason to immediately hire a personal injury attorney to negotiate aggressively for the most money from the insurance company. A personal injury lawyer is highly skilled in extracting maximum compensation from insurance companies for serious injuries. Let an experienced legal negotiator take it to the insurance company. That way, you can focus on your family and improve your condition.
Proving Legal Responsibility For The Brain Injury Is A Must
It does not matter how severe the long-term health and related consequences of your brain injury are. If you suffer a TBI because of another person’s actions, you must prove it before receiving compensation in a lawsuit or claim.
No matter how the accident happened – slip and fall, auto accident, work injury, etc. – the standard of proof is always the same. You or your attorney must show that another party was negligent in the incident that caused your injury. Proving negligence in any personal injury case involves this four-part test:
- The other person owed you a duty of care. For example, a car driver has a duty of care to obey traffic laws and not injure others.
- The driver breached the duty of care by running a red light and T-boning your car at 35 MPH.
- You suffered a brain injury because of the breach of duty.
- You would not have had a brain injury if it had not been for the actions of the liable party.
Another example: You suffer a serious concussion in a fall on someone’s property. You can hold the property owner liable if they created a hazardous condition or failed to take corrective actions to remove the hazardous condition within a reasonable period.
Proving another party’s negligence means showing strong evidence that someone else caused the accident that injured you. You need much more than your word that someone else caused the accident. For instance, you might have a witness come forward who saw the negligent driver run a red light and hit you. Or, a witness saw a spill in a grocery store that wasn’t cleaned up for an hour, which you slipped and fell in.
How Much Is A Brain Injury Case Worth?
Every personal injury case is different, and brain injuries are no exception. However, brain injury claims usually involve some of the severest injuries, so high case values are common. Generally, personal injury claims involving severe injuries are worth more than cases with minor injuries. You should speak to a brain injury attorney in your area today for a consultation. They can review the case details, including evidence of fault and medical expenses, and provide a general range of the claim’s worth.
Some of the factors that will heavily influence the value of your brain injury claim are:
- The severity of the brain injury: A concussion that heals after six weeks may have a lower case value than a serious brain injury with many long-term effects. Treating brain injuries is expensive in the United States; it isn’t unusual for a serious brain injury to cost seven figures to initially treat, followed by hundreds of thousands in costs annually.
- How much insurance is available: Insurance coverage limits are a common limiting factor in any personal injury claim. If the liable party’s insurance policy has a $100,000 bodily injury limit, you might be unable to get more money. Insurance policy limits are another reason hiring an experienced personal injury attorney is so critical. One of your attorney’s tasks will be to find every possible liable party for your injuries. In a car accident, for example, several parties may have been to blame, and each may have their own insurance policies. Those policies can be stacked and used to compensate you fairly.
- Your attorney’s skill: Brain injury claims are among the most complicated of all legal cases. You should only retain an experienced personal injury lawyer with a record of impressive brain injury settlements and verdicts.
- The victim’s age, education, and occupation: If the victim is young, educated, and has decades of employment ahead of them, the case could be worth more than an older person with less education.
- Proof of fault: If the liable party is clearly at fault, the case value is probably higher than if the fault is contested.
Remember, speaking to a personal injury lawyer is essential in a case with a serious brain injury. Assuming another party is at fault, you or your loved one is certainly looking at a considerable case value. Don’t try to negotiate a six or seven-figure brain injury case without a lawyer in your corner. Your attorney will make every attempt to negotiate a reasonable settlement. If that isn’t successful, your attorney has the experience in court to make a persuasive argument to a jury. Many insurance companies don’t want a brain injury claim to go to a jury, so a settlement is a strong possibility.
Want Maximum Compensation? See A Doctor Immediately After The Accident
When another person causes a brain injury, proving fault may be only one of the issues involved in receiving compensation. Seriously injured parties who do not see the doctor immediately after their accident can make fair compensation more difficult.
A common brain injury scenario is a slip-and-fall or auto accident in which the injured party hits their head hard on a surface, such as a windshield or concrete. The person may ‘feel fine’ after the accident and simply go home and rest. They may not feel like they suffered an injury and may have no symptoms.
However, brain injuries can be invisible initially and only become apparent after a few days. You could, for example, have a serious concussion that you don’t notice immediately because of the excitement and stress of the accident. But after three days, you may have splitting headaches, memory, and coordination problems.
Going to see the doctor now is good and necessary, but the insurance company may question how the injuries happened. They also may argue that you made your injury worse by not getting fast medical care. This means you receive less compensation in a claim.
The good news is that a personal injury attorney will fight for you, ensuring you receive the most money for your losses. Your attorney will be your legal advocate and will ensure that you get as much money for your medical needs, pain and suffering, and lost income.
Speak To A Personal Injury Attorney Today
A brain injury is one of the gravest injuries imaginable. If you or a loved one suffered a brain injury because of someone’s negligence, you should speak to an attorney. A brain injury can lead to devastating consequences that require years of recovery and rehabilitation. In the worst scenario, the damage is permanent or fatal.
A personal injury attorney can review the case details and determine if someone’s negligence caused the damage. If so, you or your loved one can receive compensation for medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, and more. Speak to a personal injury lawyer in your area today for a free consultation. Your attorney will receive a portion of your settlement or judgment if the case is successful. If it isn’t, you do not owe any legal expenses.
